Issue link: https://let.epubxp.com/i/237213
FIRE A R M S TAC T I C S show up to the range with several coolers full of sides of beef. Students perform patient rescue with dummies and fellow students, then go to work on the beef. Not only does it add realism in the "feel" of a patient, the sense of urgency increases when the student drags a dummy to cover, then has a side of beef thrown on top of the dummy. The classroom-like feel goes away. Students are reminded to view the entire problem, not just the gunfight or the patient. This material is stressful and challenging. The three Defensive Medicine classes from NorCal MedTac, Defensive Medicine 101, 102 and 103 are 8-, 16and 24-hour classes respectively. NorCal MedTac's Brannon Schell told me the beef sides are a great method for teaching trainees realistic would care. For example, when users simply pack a clotting product like a QuikClot bandage over a bleeding wound, it won't benefit the patient. Users have to feel the wound and place the bandage in the correct area. QuikClot products, by the way, are game changers. This product creates a powerful natural clot, resulting in hemostasis. Brannon told me that many students come to training and begin to arrange bandages and tourniquets on wounds, only to find they are preconfigured for use. Bleeding, according to Schell, is the highest priority, after making the environment safe to perform patient care. A person can bleed out in 29 seconds. Schell explained that gunfights are violent and often over in seconds. All of their training scenarios begin with a shooting sequence. There is even a scenario where a student has to talk a "pinned down" shooter through self care over the radio. Critical incidents are fluid and dynamic. Medical self and patient care often requires immediate and effective intervention. A medic-trained officer just may be an ounce of prevention. ■ Lindsey Bertomen is a retired police officer and retired military small arms trainer. He teaches criminal justice at Hartnell College in Salinas, California. He welcomes comments at lbertomen@letonline.com. M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N For more information on these companies, circle the corresponding number on the Reader Service Card COMPANY Chinook Medical Gear Inc. Hammer Stryke NorCal MedTac QuikClot HONOR your FINEST with SOLID BRONZE QUALITY www.libertyartworks.com 888-411-7744 Proudly Made in the U.S.A Circle 76 on Reader Service Card Circle 75 on Reader Service Card 30 Law Enforcement Technology January 2014 www.officer.com READER SERVICE NO. 77 78 79 80